VCA ~ Van Cleef Arpels Discussion thread!

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#2,536
jssl1688 said:
hey texas!! yes the malachite does do that even with the most delicate care one takes, overtime it's inevitable that the color does change. did you go to the Bower museum to see princess grace's jewelry? I was there when they had the exhibit and saw her malachite piece, boy was it dark. The striations weren't that visible and from a distant it almost looked black. Of course I can't say whether she took good care of the piece (that could random from person to person) but as far as i'm concerned and talking to several jeweler friends of mine, the potential is high. plus, it cannot touch water or the shine will be stripped off and darken. I hope you take extra care of your malachite so it stays new and beautiful forever!! I saw the wood in the store, but never took a close look or tried it on. Hubby and I just couldn't justify spending money on wood jewelry.
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I am referring to the photos of her pieces that are in one of my large VCA coffee table books ( gift from SA)....
My pieces are a. 20 motif, LE ten motif and earrings. Not much worry about encountering water, thank goodness. I'm really surprised that they offer malachite in a ring. That would be too risky for me. Re the wood.... my DH feels the same way that you do!! ("Wood?!") I still bought it when the LE pieces came out because I love the history behind the LE wood source. Years ago VCA made other pieces with this wood. There is a special history. It's very hard and polished. Feels more like rock than wood.
 
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#2,537
jssl1688 said:
hi coconuts, thanks for the info. mop and sweet turquoise is lovely, i wish I had the chance to collect a 20 motif turquoise, but those days seem to be over until they find other sources. yes the malachite does darken over time and one needs to take extra extra care. if you live in a humid climate, it's best to have a dehydrator near by so it doesn't darken. malachite cannot touch water or the shine will dull out as well as darken. it's a porous stone. I haven't heard of vca pink gold turning yellow, but i do have friends that have cartier love bracelets in p/g and it turned yellow after a while. they can rebuff so the pink hue will return but that's not suggested more than twice otherwise you can really strip out the screw design and lose gold.
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Hmmm, I'd love to out more about whether malachite will darken or oxidize over time? I have definitely heard plenty about how delicate malachite is and how care should be taken to never immerse it in water, but never anything about it darkening. My SA told me that if malachite gets wet it will remove the protective polish from the stone and ultimately the stone will turn translucent, almost like sea glass; she said they had a demonstration on the care of malachite from one of VCA's gemstone experts and were shown some "ruined" pieces. But she never said anything about it darkening. (I actually thought the sea glass look sounded pretty, lol; but I know that that is not meant to be the look of the stone!).

When I saw the VCA exhibit in Paris I think there were one or two older pieces in the show that contained malachite and they were still vibrant. I'd LOVE to see Princess Grace's necklaces in person!

I wonder if any TPF'ers have access to more info about this and can educate us further?
 
#2,539
After reading about the malachite could be darken over times, I do some searches and find out something very intersting:
1. most of precious or semi-precious gemstones are treated and it is widely accepted as "natural" stones, except for diamond (must be stated in certificate if treated), alexandrite, garnet and spinel (no treatment at all). Some methods have been used for thousands years
2. all kinds of stones used in alhambra collection are quite fragile, with the hardness comes from 2.5 to 7 in Mohs scale (diamond is the hardest mineral with Mohs scale of 10 and chalk is the softest with only 1). I list them from the softest to the hardest stones, the numbers next to the stones is the Mohs
MOP 2.5-4.5
malachite, coral 3-4
lapis, turquoise 5-6
onyx, tiger-eye, carnelian 6.5-7
that's why some of these stones could be easily damaged when worn by scratching with harder stuff, eg. a copper penny has a hardness of 3; a knife blade, 5; window glass, 5.5; and a steel file, 6.5.

after doing my research I could "accept" that VCA has used "treatment" stones in their jewellry, but still could not accept the fact that the quality could be changed / worse over times (as mentioned here about malachite and lapis) as their pieces are mostly bought as "investment" not for a short time but long time of use. For such a hefty price tag, it should be remain the same in quality over times, other than that what is the heck of buying a luxury designer necklace if you could not pass it on to your daughters one day.
 
#2,543
PhoenixH said:
All this talk about malachite is making me very nervous about mine! :(
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I'm not worried at all and I have collected every stone except for chalcedony. I have several pieces of malachite in my collection.
I think you are fine - just don't wear it in the shower or to the beach.
These are many of us here who've been collecting/ wearing their pieces for years without issues. If there is a problem, customer service is available.
 
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#2,544
Coconuts40 said:
Thanks PennyD. You can never go wrong with MOP, I always gravitate towards MOP and considered the necklace you have. So difficult when everything is so beautiful!

I haven't bought this yet, just tried it on. However, I think I am going to take the plunge.
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I read the story about the limited edition letterwood/PG collections that came out in 2012/13 from the found wood in the VCA attic. Do you know if the Magic pendant was part of that LE?

I saw a pre-owned one for sale earlier today :graucho: I am curious if you decided to take the plunge? :cool:
 
#2,545
texasgirliegirl said:
I am referring to the photos of her pieces that are in one of my large VCA coffee table books ( gift from SA)....
My pieces are a. 20 motif, LE ten motif and earrings. Not much worry about encountering water, thank goodness. I'm really surprised that they offer malachite in a ring. That would be too risky for me. Re the wood.... my DH feels the same way that you do!! ("Wood?!") I still bought it when the LE pieces came out because I love the history behind the LE wood source. Years ago VCA made other pieces with this wood. There is a special history. It's very hard and polished. Feels more like rock than wood.
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hi texas, how sweet of your sa. don't you love how they send us little gifts on our special day?! mine sent me a fairy parfum and I didn't expect it at all. re the photo, yes i think in the book they def do some photoshopping of the picture because the one i saw at the exhibit was not bright at all. even hubby said the same thing (unless that's not really her piece?). I know the crown that was there worn by empress farah pahlavi was not real and an imitation piece (they made it clear). yes, the rings with stones are totally Impractical for me as i wash my hands 30 + times a day. i'm a bit of a germaphobe. i'm so intrigued by how the wood is hard as rock, i would check it out the next time i go see my sa.

hopingoneday said:
Hmmm, I'd love to out more about whether malachite will darken or oxidize over time? I have definitely heard plenty about how delicate malachite is and how care should be taken to never immerse it in water, but never anything about it darkening. My SA told me that if malachite gets wet it will remove the protective polish from the stone and ultimately the stone will turn translucent, almost like sea glass; she said they had a demonstration on the care of malachite from one of VCA's gemstone experts and were shown some "ruined" pieces. But she never said anything about it darkening. (I actually thought the sea glass look sounded pretty, lol; but I know that that is not meant to be the look of the stone!).

When I saw the VCA exhibit in Paris I think there were one or two older pieces in the show that contained malachite and they were still vibrant. I'd LOVE to see Princess Grace's necklaces in person!

I wonder if any TPF'ers have access to more info about this and can educate us further?
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hopingoneday said:
By the way I did not at all mean to imply that this info is wrong!!! I would just love to know where to turn to learn more. I know that malachite is somehow related to copper and it would stand to reason that it could potentially oxidize...
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hi hopingoneday, i didn't take offense to what you said at all. if there are other members that are familiar with the stone and could chime in would be great. i've googled some info on malachite and most info states the exclusion near water, heat and sharp blows as it's a very delicate stone. I'm so tempted to just go get a cheap malachite somewhere and do my own test. that is the best way to know how malachite plays out with these factors.


PhoenixH said:
All this talk about malachite is making me very nervous about mine! :(
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hi phoenix, i don't think there's a need to be nervous. just take care of it the best you can and avoid water, extreme heat and sharp objects. bringing up the subject on the longevity of malachite was not intended to make anyone scared or turn negative towards this particular piece. it's better to know these infos before hand than run into a problem not realizing what could of prevented it. malachite is truly a beautiful stone, but as a piece I would like to treasure forever and pass on, it's just not durable enough for me.
 
#2,546
I picked up my LE gray MOP pendant today (it was sent out for engraving). The picture really doesn't do it justice , however I'm attaching my first ever photo! I apologize for the poor quality - it's the best I could do!

While in the store I decided that I need the wg MOP vintage alhambra earrings. They are stunning and will almost complete my set (I have the pendant and 5 motif bracelet - missing the 20 motif necklace:graucho::graucho:!).
 

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#2,547
bocagirl said:
I picked up my LE gray MOP pendant today (it was sent out for engraving). The picture really doesn't do it justice , however I'm attaching my first ever photo! I apologize for the poor quality - it's the best I could do!

While in the store I decided that I need the wg MOP vintage alhambra earrings. They are stunning and will almost complete my set (I have the pendant and 5 motif bracelet - missing the 20 motif necklace:graucho::graucho:!).
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Wow Bocagirl this looks stunning on you. Congratulations and enjoy!
And congratulations on the earrings. What a fun day!
 
#2,548
marksuzy said:
I read the story about the limited edition letterwood/PG collections that came out in 2012/13 from the found wood in the VCA attic. Do you know if the Magic pendant was part of that LE?

I saw a pre-owned one for sale earlier today :graucho: I am curious if you decided to take the plunge? :cool:
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Hi Marksuzy, Yup, took the plunge today:)
I decided to buy it early in the season so I can enjoy it. It is a perfect fall/winter necklace.
I really don't know if this is part of the LE. I was meaning to ask but forgot to. :tdown:

If you don't mind me asking..Where did you find the pre owned? How much were they selling it for? If you love long necklaces this is a great option.

Next on my list: frivole earrings..likely in 2015.:D
 
#2,549
Coconuts40 said:
Wow Bocagirl this looks stunning on you. Congratulations and enjoy!
And congratulations on the earrings. What a fun day!
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I didn't get the earrings -- they didn't have them in stock in wg. They are ordering from another store and will have in a few days.

I have to talk my hubby into them as a late anniversary gift. Maybe he'll agree.....time will tell!!! I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!
 
#2,550
marksuzy said:
I read the story about the limited edition letterwood/PG collections that came out in 2012/13 from the found wood in the VCA attic. Do you know if the Magic pendant was part of that LE?

I saw a pre-owned one for sale earlier today :graucho: I am curious if you decided to take the plunge? :cool:
Click to expand...

It is not part of that vintage wood.
Only the limited edition letterwood was created from the vintage wood and each piece is numbered.
 
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